Black Tomb – Black Tomb (Review)

Black Tomb are a sludge/doom band from the US. This is their debut album.

Black Tomb appear to have congealed out of some dank, dark tar pit with the express purpose of creating bleak, filthy doom metal.

Think of Electric Wizard if they were a nastier and more pissed-off proposition; add a bit of Eyehategod and Dopethrone into the mix and you’re on the right track.

This is 49 minutes of grim darkness and murderous impulses. The songs are full of fuzzy, ugly riffs and sickening screams. Aspects of psychedelia can be heard occasionally, gasping for breath as the sludgy onslaught tries to strangle the life out of them.

The hypnotic dirge of the ultra-heavy riffs drag you down into their foetid swamp. As you gasp your last breaths you recognise how truly inspired the riff-work on the album is, although at that point this realisation doesn’t do you much good as your lungs begin to fill with sludge and Black Tomb totally owns you.

Somehow, this is a good thing.

This is a heavy sludge/doom album of exceptional quality. Black Tomb seem to have come out of nowhere and easily and indelibly made a huge black mark for all to see. Pay attention, as they’re here to stay and this is one monolithically filthy album you don’t want to miss out on.